Kerala Blasters was staring at relegation midway through the 2026 ISL season with just one point from six matches.

Kerala Blasters had its worst start in history and coach David Catala was under fire. A 1-1 draw against East Bengal in the away match gave faint hope of a revival.

However, Kerala Blasters lost 1-3 at home to Punjab FC and Catala was forced to leave his position via mutual agreement with the club. 

Englishman Ashley Westwood was appointed as interim coach and tasked with salvaging the disappointing season. However, Blasters’ first match under Westwood ended in a 0-2 defeat against Delhi SC.

The turnaround came in the next away match against Bengaluru FC.

Blasters, after conceding an own goal, came back to stun Bengaluru FC 2-1 through goals from Victor Bertomeu and Francisco Feuillasser.

The win against Bengaluru was followed by a 1-1 draw against NorthEast United at home. Then came the sequence of four consecutive wins which lifted Blasters from the relegation zone and into the eighth position in the points table.

Under Catala, Blasters struggled to score in open play. The Spanish coach didn’t have quality players to implement his possession based playing style. Mispasses, often by Indian players, surrendered the advantage and lack of creativity in midfield saw Blasters fail to take a single shot at the rival goals in most of the matches.

However, after Westwood took over, Blasters managed to increase its open play efficiency. The passing errors came down drastically and the team played more direct football showing mobility and penetration with improvised play in the flanks.

Kevin Yoke was the heart of the Blasters attack with his penetrative runs on the right flank. The arrival of Karim Benrife, Francisco Feuillasser and Fallou Ndiaye during Westwood’s tenure increased the quality.

Westwood was tactically flexible and changed formations as per the requirement. The Blasters’ defence consistently kept its shape, limiting the attacking options of its rivals. And the switch from defence to attack was quick and often caught the rival defence napping.

Westwood placed the Indian players in the right positions and managed to bring the best out of them. Freddy Lallawmawma, Vipin Mohanan and R.V. Hormipam prospered under Westwood.

Moreover, the team displayed a rare fighting spirit and fought till the end. With things falling in place, Westwood turned a sinking ship into a cruiser though it came too late.

Kerala Blasters extended its unbeaten run to five matches with a dominant 3-1 win over Mohammedan Sporting Club in the India Super League (ISL) football at the Jawaharlal Nehru International stadium here on Sunday (May 10, 2026).

After conceding the lead against run of play in the first half, Blasters bounced back through goals from Francisco Feuillasier (44), Victor Bertomeu (59) and substitute S.M. Sreekuttan (74) to take full points.

Roy Mahitosh stunned Blasters with a 25-yard piledriver to give Mohammedan the short-lived lead in the 42nd minute. With the win, Blasters took its points tally to 14 from 12 matches and is placed eighth in the table.

Mohammedan’s three match unbeaten streak ended with this loss and it remains at the bottom of the table with three points.

Blasters dominated Mohammedan in the first half largely through the ingenuity shown by Kevin Yoke on the left flank. Mohammedan survived through captain Padam Chettri’s brilliance under the bar. Chettri made three good saves to thwart Blasters’ strikers in the first half.

However, Mohammedan scored against the run of play when Mahitosh dispossessed Ferddy Lallamawa and made a searing run and ended it with a long ranger which brushed the near post and went in. Blasters drew level within two minutes when Yoke threaded a pass between three defenders for Francisco to score.

Bertomeu headed Blasters ahead in the 59th minute through a precise centre from Yoke. Sreekuttan looked ungainly when he headed a cross from Yoke wide in the 72minute. However, Sreekuttan made amends when he chipped the ball in from a Bertomeu’s cross to complete the tally in the 74th minute.

The result: Kerala Blasters 3 (Francisco Feuillasier 44, Victor Bertomeu 59, S.M. Sreekuttan 74) bt Mohammedan SC 1 (Roy Mahitosh 42).